YOUTH LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE

The NSLC uses an interactive approach to learning that enables students to experience a day-in-the-life of a future career. Students may try a case, respond to a disease outbreak, negotiate a treaty, manage a business, stage a theater performance or even run for President of the United States. Our youth leadership conferences are interactive, dynamic and exciting. They are facilitated by our staff, but directed by our students.

While at the NSLC, students will meet with and learn from national and world leaders, surgeons and scientists, actors and playwrights, business leaders, lawyers and more. Exclusive tours and behind-the-scenes visits add richness to the experience.

Just as important, students participating in youth leadership conferences experience life on a college campus as they make friends with a diverse group of students who share their interests. The NSLC offers students an unforgettable experience, a fact demonstrated by our Team Advisors, a group of graduate and undergraduate students from some of the nation’s most prestigious colleges and universities, more than 80% of whom are NSLC alumni.

At the heart of the NSLC is a comprehensive leadership program designed to develop the leadership potential within each of our students. Students participate in a series of interactive workshops led by nationally renowned facilitators. Students practice the skills of effective leadership throughout the program as they work with their teams, returning home with the skills essential for success in high school, college and beyond.

At the National Student Leadership Conference, students enjoy college-level lectures taught by university professors, doctors, practicing attorneys, professional artists and more. Our Youth Leadership Conference Lecture Series provides students with a foundation of knowledge that will prepare them for success in college and in their future career.

The NSLC curriculum is challenging. It was developed in conjunction with leaders in the academic and professional community. American University, distinguished as a premier global university, has certified the academic quality of the NSLC, enabling students attending the NSLC to earn transferable college credit in conjunction with their NSLC program.

Throughout your NSLC experience, you will engage in hands-on simulations specially designed to give you an insider's look into professional success. Each simulation will build on the skills learned in leadership workshops, draw upon the lessons learned from faculty and guest speakers, and integrate the knowledge gained on trips and tours.

Become a Teacher, Create a Better Classroom

Design and Build a Robot

Grow and Run a Business

Investigate a Crime Scene

Advise the President on Matters of National Security

Assume the Role of an International Diplomat

Discover the Power of the Media

Try a Case in a Real Courtroom

Serve Your Community, Define Your Vision

Learn Clinical Techniques, Diagnose and Stop a Medical Outbreak

Manage an Athlete or Entertainer

Experience the Theater, Stage Your Own Performance

Act as a Member of the U.S. Senate or Presidential Candidate

Travel Abroad, Experience International Business

Leadership is the key to success in every profession and the core of every youth leadership conference. Since 1989, the NSLC has taught the world’s future leaders the art of leadership. Tens of thousands of high school students have come to the NSLC to actively participate in leadership workshops as well as meet with and learn from decision-makers in the fields of law, medicine, government, diplomacy, engineering, business, journalism and the arts.

No matter which program you choose, you will participate in career-specific leadership workshops in an open and fun learning environment. Working with experienced leadership facilitators, you and your teammates will discover and develop the leadership skills needed to succeed in high school, college and your chosen profession.

Each of us is required to enter into negotiations on almost a daily basis. You may need to negotiate with an employer for more money, with your parents for a later curfew or with a friend to buy an old bike. In your future career, you are sure to need strong negotiation skills, whether negotiating an international treaty or a contract for a music performance. During this interactive workshop, you will learn the time-tested techniques for successful negotiation and have a chance to try them yourself.

Learning why you communicate in a certain way is just as important as learning how you communicate. How do you define yourself? What do you take into consideration when you make a decision? During this introspective activity you will be asked to identify "why" you make certain decisions and form certain relationships.

Have you ever been faced with a decision that forced you to choose between two options, both of which might have negative consequences? During this workshop, you will learn how leaders make tough decisions and you will consider ethical dilemmas that face people in your future profession each day.

Getting a project done well and on time is often a challenge. Even the most dedicated leaders can get burned out if they don’t take time to relax and reflect. During this innovative workshop you will learn how to evaluate and manage your stress levels and effectively use your most valuable resource - time.

Have you ever noticed that when trying to lead a group, you connect well with some people and not at all with others? Each of us has different styles of leadership and communication. During this exciting workshop you will learn to recognize the major traits that influence how we communicate with others and discover how to harness this knowledge effectively.

You can’t escape it. No matter what profession you choose, at some time public speaking will be a necessity. Whether making a speech to 1,000 people or a presentation to a small group of co-workers, great leaders must be able to communicate effectively. During this interactive workshop, you will learn some time-tested techniques to improve your public speaking and have an opportunity to put them to use immediately.

Have you ever been part of a group that imploded because group members just couldn’t get along? A strong leader is never more important than when he/she is called upon to convince team members to put aside their differences and unite behind common goals. In this lively workshop involving common group conflicts, you and your team will approach and mediate tense situations. You will practice the arts of cooperation and compromise while fine-tuning your ability to persuade.

Each youth leadership conference includes the opportunity to engage professionals in your chosen field during exclusive site visits. You will also enjoy the chance to relax and explore Washington D.C., New York City, Chicago or San Francisco

during sightseeing trips to some of these city’s famous landmarks. For specific trips and tours for each program, please review the sample schedule on that program’s page.

• Capitol Hill
• Smithsonian Institution
• U.S. Departments & Agencies
• National Monuments
• Arlington Cemetery
• Holocaust Memorial Museum
• Ropes Challenge Course
• Baltimore Harbor
• Historic Georgetown
• Medical Facilities
• NASA
• Embassies

• Golden Gate National Park
• California Academy of Sciences
• Ghirardelli Square
• Palace of Fine Arts
• Pier 39
• J. David Gladstone Institutes
• Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk
• The Exploratorium
• The Golden Gate Bridge
• Monterey Bay Research Institute

• Wall Street
• Federal Reserve
• Empire State Building
• South Street Seaport
• Broadway Theaters
• Times Square/ Rockefeller Plaza
• Metropolitan Museum of Art
• United Nations
• The Meadowlands
• Lincoln Center

• Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
• Grant Park
• Chicago Law Schools
• Chicago Board of Trade
• Ropes Challenge Course
• Navy Pier
• Sears Tower
• Museum of Science and Industry
• Millennium Park
• Magnificent Mile

“I am deathly afraid of heights and had already decided I would not participate in the ropes course. However, our team bonded so well and I received so much support that I went on the ropes course and loved every second of it. (Even though my legs were shaking so badly it was difficult to stand up straight). That experience changed my life and I want to thank you for pushing me outside my comfort level!”

- Bethany W., NSLC Student

Overcoming differences and creating a team takes work and shared experiences. On one of the first days of your Conference, you and your team will participate in an exciting Ropes Challenge Course.

During this Team Challenge, you will face a number of mental and physical obstacles that will require teamwork to resolve. Whether moving your entire team across an imaginary river, over a 7ft wall, or across a ladder bridge 40 feet above the ground, you will work together, solve problems creatively and develop a bond that will last throughout your conference and beyond.

The NSLC believes in challenge by choice. While you will be encouraged to participate in all activities, only you can determine the level and type of challenge that is appropriate for you. Every activity will have ways in which all team members can play a vital role. You will find that while not every team member will elect to do every activity, they will still be a part of the team-building process as they offer encouragement and support to their teammates.

The National Student Leadership Conference has a unique partnership with American University, distinguished as a premier global university and known for turning “ideas into action and action into service.” As a result of this NSLC/AU alliance, students attending the NSLC have the opportunity to earn college credit from American University. This credit option enhances your education within the framework of your program experience, without interrupting NSLC activities.

Students participating in the AU College Credit program will work with a professor from American University. Through a combination of classroom instruction and distance-learning, students will gain a deeper understanding of issues in their chosen career field while receiving feedback from an actual college professor.

Working in conjunction with their professor, College Credit students will write a college-level research paper on a subject of their choice. This paper will help prepare students for the rigors of college while still in high school. Many students find the portfolio of work beneficial as they submit their college applications.

Learn more about the AU College Credit Option, including detailed course descriptions, on American University’s website at http://www.american.edu/registrar/nslc/.